Experimenting With 

 The Responsive Dahlia 



An Infinity of Variation Which Has 

 Only Been Tapped 



IF you have seen a Navajo blanket you are 

 aware that the Indians of the Southwest are 

 lovers of vivid colors — in particular of glaring 

 reds. 



It would appear that the insects of the same 

 region have acquired similar tastes; for they have 

 aided in the development of a good many flowers 

 that advertise their wares with the most brilliant 

 hues. The cactus furnishes a familiar instance. 



Another example is supplied by the even more 

 familiar dahlia, which in its native Mexican form 

 had florets of bright red with a yellow center — 

 supplying the basis for the modified color schemes 

 of the dahlias now under cultivation everywhere. 



The original red dahlia so attracted the eyes 

 of the Spanish conquerors in Mexico that they sent 

 the plant to Europe, and its reception there sug- 

 gests that barbarian and insect have no monopoly 



[Volume IX — Chapter VII] 



